1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an apparatus for imaging and treating tissue structures with ultrasonic energy, and in particular to an apparatus having a variable configuration to accommodate tissue structures of different shapes and sizes.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Today, many surgical procedures are performed through small openings in the skin, as compared to the larger openings typically required in traditional procedures, in an effort to reduce both trauma to the patient and recovery time. Generally, such procedures are referred to as endoscopic, unless performed on the patient's abdomen, in which case the procedure is referred to as laparoscopic. Throughout the present disclosure, the term “minimally invasive” should be understood to encompass endoscopic, laparoscopic and robotic procedures.
During the course of minimally invasive procedures, the nature of the relatively small opening through which surgical instruments are manipulated, and/or the presence of sub-surface tissue structures, may obscure a direct line-of-sight to the target surgical site. Even dedicated visualization tools, e.g., cameras, endoscopes, and the like, may be limited by the geometry of a minimally invasive surgical site. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a method of sub-surface visualization that is not limited by the geometry of the minimally invasive surgical site. It would further be desirable to treat sub-surface tissue structures with ultrasonic energy.
One such technique involves the use of ultrasound to provide clinicians with the ability to image, diagnose and treat sub-surface tissue structures. Ultrasound imaging relies on different acoustic impedances of adjacent tissue structures to provide the contrast used for imaging and identifying separate tissue structures. Ultrasound imaging possesses several advantages that are attractive for real-time application in surgical procedures, e.g., minimal associated non-ionizing radiation and relatively small and inexpensive imaging hardware. Further, imaging data obtained from many ultrasound imaging procedures is collected instantly and at localized points within a patient, as opposed to collected from a large imaging vessel in which a patient is positioned, allowing real-time assessment to tissue morphology and real-time treatment.
The application of ultrasound energy to tissue may be also be used to increase the amount of heat within tissue e.g., to ablate, melt, seal, char, necrose, or cauterize tissue. In this manner, the use of ultrasound energy to treat tissue may obviate the need for solid instruments to alter or physically separate tissue.
Some surgical apparatuses utilize approximating jaws to capture tissue therebetween, positioning the tissue for the application of ultrasonic energy thereto. However, challenges are presented in capturing and treating tissue having irregular or complex geometries. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a surgical apparatus having approximating jaws that are reconfigurable to capture tissue having irregular or complex geometries. Further, a desired site for tissue treatment or imaging, e.g., a cancerous or diseased node, may be located deep within a tissue mass. Accordingly, it would be further desirable to provide a surgical apparatus configured to image or treat a tissue mass from more than one side of the tissue mass, such that ultrasonic energy may be applied to the node from different directions.